“Oh, your brother.”
She released apfftand started walking. “We both know he’s not my brother, Molly,” Harper grunted with her eyes forward.
“Well, foster-brother then?” I batted back, nudging her with my elbow.
Shooting me a tight smile, she replied. “Nope, not even close. He’snothingto me. The only ones Icantolerate are Hudson and Micah. Nix and Reed can go fuck themselves.”
“You can tolerate Hudson?” I was surprised she got along with the moodiest of the brothers.
“Yeah. Hudson’s a pussy cat.” I couldn’t help my snort. Hudson and pussy cat did not belong in the same sentence.
“And Micah?” I queried.
“Harmless. He’s always off his face,” she chuckled.
“Off his face?” Did she mean on booze or other substances?
Throwing me another side glance, Harper grinned. “You know, weed and shit like that.” She had an amazing number of freckles, and the sun highlighted the ones on her nose. A random thought that she needed sunscreen seeped into my thoughts.
I took a deep breath and then waded in. “OK. So, what’s the story with you guys? If you don’t mind me asking? You and Phoenix seem to butt heads regularly.”
“It’s complicated.”
“Do you like him? As in, you know…” I suggested, giving herthelook.
Harper’s entire face screwed up. “Eww, no. Phoenix and I were fostered by the same family when I was ten.”
“So, you knew himbeforeyou moved in with Mrs Sawyer?”
“Yes. We were with the same family for a while.”
“And then?” I prompted. I could see the sadness in her eyes.
“And then he ditched me for a better deal.”
“So, Phoenix was moved to another family? I thought the foster system encouraged long-term placements. To allow the kids to settle?” I had read all about the social services system in the USA after hearing that Hudson was fostered.
“In theory, they do. Unless the placement isn’t working out. Phoenix started fighting with one of the other fosters we lived with, and that’s why he was transferred.”
“So, it wasn’t his fault then?” Heaven knew why I was trying to give him the benefit of the doubt.
“He said he’d come back for me,” Harper explained with a slight shudder.
“And?”
“And he never did. In all fairness, he visited me a few times until he got bored. His new home, Ma Sawyer’s place, was just across town. I was left there for two years until my term ended.”
“But you’re back together now? With Phoenix, I mean.”
“Yes, but it's not the same. The time apart changed things,” she said, turning away and setting off again.
Scooting to catch up, I asked. “Have you talked to him about it? Asked why he stopped coming to visit?”
Harper released a heavy sigh. “No, it’s water under the bridge, and we’re very different people now.” Then the obvious question surfaced.Whywas this girl in the system to start with? But then again, why wasanychild? The list was endless. I had read that there werethousandsof kids in children’s homes and supported accommodation, all with tragic backstories.
She must have read my mind as she suddenly said. “My real parents died in a house fire. It made me an orphan, as I had no other living relatives. That’s why I was fostered by that first family at ten. It was shit but Phoenix made it bearable.Whenhe was there.”
“What about now? Are you happy with the Sawyers?”
